Untelevised team radio reveals Antonelli's reaction to Verstappen's title defeat

Previously unreleased team radio from the season-ending Abu Dhabi Grand Prix has captured the moment Mercedes rookie Andrea Kimi Antonelli learned that Max Verstappen lost the 2025 Formula 1 World Championship by a mere two points—a margin directly influenced by Antonelli's own error weeks earlier.

Why it matters:

The audio provides a poignant, behind-the-scenes look at the human impact of a title battle decided by the smallest of margins. It highlights how a single mistake by a driver not in contention can have monumental consequences for the championship protagonists, and underscores the sportsmanship between rivals in the high-pressure F1 paddock.

The details:

• In the radio exchange, Antonelli's race engineer, Peter Bonnington, first confirms the race result and that Mercedes has secured second in the constructors' championship.
• Antonelli then asks, "So Norris won the championship?" and, after confirmation, presses for the specific points gap: "By how many points?"
• Bonnington replies, "So that's just two. Just the two points," to which Antonelli offers no verbal response. The two-point deficit is the exact number of points Norris gained when Antonelli's mistake in Qatar promoted the McLaren driver to fourth place.
• This radio moment occurred after Antonelli had already sought out Verstappen in the Abu Dhabi media pen to apologize for the Qatar incident, with Verstappen reassuring him, "Mate, don't [apologise]. It's all good."

Between the lines:

The sequence reveals the weight felt by a young driver whose innocent error inadvertently shaped the championship outcome. Antonelli's specific question about the points margin suggests a keen awareness of his role in the title narrative. Furthermore, Verstappen's subsequent support—sending Antonelli a private message calling his online abusers "brainless"—illustrates a layer of respect and solidarity among drivers that often transcends the fierce competition on track.